Divisions of the world in Islam

territory of treaty) denoting non-Islamic lands which are at peace or have an armistice with a Muslim government,[2] and dar al-harb (lit.

territory of war), denoting lands that share a border with dar al-Islam and have not concluded an armistice.

Muslims are imposed to spread Sharia law and sovereignty through lesser jihad against dar al-harb.

In the case of war, Muslims are imposed to subject[clarification needed], or eliminate fighters until they surrender or seek peace.

[4] The Arabic singular form dar (دار), translated literally, may mean "house", "abode", "structure", "place", "land", or "country".

[6] Early Islamic jurists devised these terms to denote legal rulings for ongoing Muslim conquests almost a century after Muhammad.

The first, called dar al-Islam, sometimes Pax Islamica, consisted of Muslims and non-Muslims living under Islamic sovereignty.

[9] For example, if an enemy seized dar al-Islam's citizens, the state was obliged to free them, whether they were Muslim or non-Muslim.

[5] According to some scholars, the term "abode of war" was simply a description of the harsh reality of the premodern world.

[1] Under the classical doctrine, it was the duty of Muslim rulers to bring dar al-harb under Islamic sovereignty.

[26] Since dar al-Islam was considered to be in a state of constant warfare with dar-al-harb unless there was a formal peace treaty, and non-Muslim prisoners of war viewed as a legitimate target of enslavement according to the rules of slavery in Islam, the dar al-harb was historically used as a slave supply source for the slave trade during the era of era of slavery in the muslim world.

[30] In the absence of a peace treaty, a harbi could also enter Muslim lands safely if that 'harbi first obtained an aman (assurance of protection).

[30] Any adult Muslim resident of dar al-Islam (male or female, free or slave) could grant such aman to a harbi.